The residents of a remote village in neighbouring Kaushambi district, it seems, have gone a bit too far in their adulation of Narendra Modi. In fact, they have dedicated a temple to him — complete with a statue and ‘Modi Chalisa’.

Villagers from Bhagwanpur have begun to worship the BJP prime ministerial candidate as a deity and address him as ‘Swami’ Narendra Modi. The ancient Shiva temple where Modi’s statue is installed is now called ‘NaMo NaMo Mandir’.

The ‘devotees’ offer daily prayers to the deity and also recite a ‘Modi Chalisa’ besides lighting a lamp which they say will be lit continuously for 125 days with the wish that Modi becomes the prime minister of the country.

Not surprisingly, the move, led by the temple priest, has its share of critics, with some considering it as a stunt by those affiliated to the BJP. However, unfazed by what others say, 49-year-old priest Brijendra Narayan Mishra believes “worshipping Modi will result in a better future for the country”.

“Modi alone has the potential to bring stability, security and prosperity to the nation and worshipping his statute is my style of patriotism,” he said.

“Har koi desh ke liye kuch na kuch kar raha hai to hamne socha ki desh ko Modiji jaise neta ki zarurat hai, to hum unke liye ishwariye shakti pradan karne ka prayas kyun na karen (Everyone is contributing on his part for the betterment of the country and we need a leader like Modi. So I thought I would do this and others followed),” said Mishra while talking to TOI.

“We are not doing this for personal propaganda as we are of the view that if Modi becomes the prime minister, we will have a better future,” he said.

The ‘NaMo, NaMo Mandir’ is becoming popular among the masses and people from nearby villages are coming here to catch a glimpse of it.

Interestingly, Mishra dresses like Modi in a kurta and half-jacket and has styled his hair and beard like the BJP leader. In the temple, Modi’s about 4-foot tall statue sits beside the Shiva Linga, as the villagers believe “Lord Shiva would give a long life to Modi”. For this, they are also reciting the ‘Mahamritunjaya’ mantra.

Apart from offering garlands and performing a daily ‘aarti’ in front of the idol, the villagers assemble and sing the ‘Modi Chalisa’ and bhajans in his support.

However, not everyone is a blind follower of Mishra’s idea. Some consider this act a stunt and meaningless in the present context. “The priest wants cheap popularity and installing a Modi statue will not work,” said a villager.